What We Study

NIEHS intramural scientists have defined descriptive terms of particular relevance to their own research, and have ranked those terms accordingly. This search feature obtains best-matches with the terms you choose, and shows an overall score based on the scientific rankings.

Research

NIEHS research uses state-of-the-art science and technology to investigate the interplay between environmental exposures, human biology, genetics, and common diseases to help prevent disease and improve human health.

Environmental Stewardship

Research Highlights

The vision of the NIEHS is to use environmental health sciences to understand human disease and improve human health. Use the search box to see research highlights from NIEHS scientists since its founding in 1966.

About NIEHS

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) is expanding and accelerating its contributions to scientific knowledge of human health and the environment, and to the health and well-being of people everywhere.

Purpose

The NIEHS Strategic Plan places a significant emphasis on transforming exposure science through the development of new approaches to exposure assessment, the definition and dissemination of the exposome concept, and the development and demonstration of the exposome as a tool for both epidemiological and mechanistic research. In order to achieve this goal, NIEHS launched the Exposure Science and the Exposome Webinar Series on April 4, 2014 to foster discussions on international efforts in advancing exposure science and the exposome concept as well as challenges and opportunities in incorporating this concept in environmental health research.

Abstract

Increasingly, the gut microbiome has been implicated in the etiology of cancer, not only as an infectious agent but also by modifying dietary exposures that influence disease risk. Unlike human metabolism, different groups of gut bacteria interact to alter exposures that influence disease risk. Though the composition and metabolism of the gut microbiome is influenced by diet, the gut microbiome can also modify dietary and other environmental exposures in ways that are detrimental or beneficial to the host. The purpose of this webinar is to introduce the role of the gut microbiome in human health, discuss common methodologic approaches to studying the gut microbiome, and focus on both infectious and metabolic microbiome pathways that may modify environmental exposures in humans.

Bio

Meredith A. J. Hullar, Ph.D., is a Principal Staff Scientist in the Public Health Sciences Division of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Her research focuses on the role of the microbiome in human health related to cancer. She has published numerous papers on how the microbiome alters dietary exposures. Her long-term research goal is to continue to explore and establish the multifaceted links between environmental exposures and the microbiome in relation to human health and disease. Dr. Hullar holds a Ph.D. from Harvard University and she completed her post-doctoral fellowship in Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Washington which both focused on understanding the role of the microbiome in complex systems.